Text and Tombs: A Fragile Relationship

444  China Review International: Vol. 18, No. 4, 2011

Text and Tombs: A Fragile Relationship Wu Hung. The Art of the Yellow Springs: Understanding Chinese Tombs. Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press, 2011. 272 pp. Hardcover $50.00, isbn 978-0-8248-3426-5.

© 2013 by University of Hawai‘i Press

The Art of the Yellow Springs is an ambitious study of Chinese tombs, dating from the Neolithic period to Mao Zedong’s mausoleum. Through a holistic perspective, Wu Hung intends “to push . . . scholarship to the next level by making interpre­ tative methods the direct subject of consideration” thereby providing “a genuine understanding of the art and architecture of Chinese tombs” (p. 14). It is, however, for the reader to figure out what exactly these “interpretative methods” entail. Perceiving such a phrase, one cannot help but wonder: Is not interpretation the ultimate goal of all historical/archaeological research? Yet, delving deeper into the book, it quickly becomes obvious that he is referring to a modus operandi quite familiar since at least the publication of his Monumentality in Early Chinese Art and Architecture (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1995).1 Wu Hung, a classically trained scholar, prefers to interpret archaeological data exclusively on the back of written sources. Accepting the latter’s universal validity and, in terms of reliability, dominance over the former, the author offers many stimulating thoughts. The book is organized in three chapters (pp. 17–217) that are preceded by a short introduction (pp. 7–16) and succeeded by a coda (pp. 219–233). The three chapters are divided in three or four subchapters; these are arranged in several sections. Unfortunately, only the titles of chapters and subchapters appear in the table of contents. Nevertheless, aptly named headings of subchapters and sections facilitate easy navigation through the author’s arguments. As it has become usual practice of publishing houses to replace the much more user-friendly and thus infinitely more desirable footnotes with endnotes, we find the latter appended to the main text (pp. 234–254). The bibliography (pp. 255–263) follows. A comprehensive index (pp. 264–272) concludes the volume. Divided into three parts — general index (main concepts, locations of tomb sites, personal names, periods), period index (tombs of the discussion appear in chronological order), and location index (tombs of the discussion appear in alphabetical-geographical order) — it is a valuable tool for browsing through certain subjects. The sheer amount and high quality of its altogether 230 color and black-and-white illustrations as well as line drawings certainly contribute to the quality of the book. As the title “Spatiality” suggests, chapter 1 argues for a tomb to have been “a special place for the dead” (p. 17) and traces how structure as well as decoration of Chinese tombs developed accordingly. Wu identifies the desire to provide a space for the deceased with the invention of the coffin about six thousand years ago. The concept evolved into wooden burial chambers constructed within the confine-

Features  445

ments of vertical shaft pits (Shang through Han periods) and got even more elaborate when the chambers were divided into various compartments and people started to use several nested coffins (Eastern Zhou period). Practices changed, however, when members of the social elite started to bury their dead in horizontally arranged rock-cut tombs (Western Han) from which horizontally organized brick-built chamber tombs developed (second century c.e.). These changes were but mani­festations of altered religious beliefs: ancestral worship shifted from temple to tomb, the traditional dualistic concept of the soul had become obsolete, death started being viewed as an alternative way to immortality, and the development of an underground bureaucracy. The author concludes “that these ideas all encouraged people to envision and construct an underground tomb as a houselike, three-dimensional space. Indeed, we may conceptualize the transition from casket grave to chamber grave as a shift in tomb planning from an ‘object-oriented’ to a ‘space-oriented’ design” (p. 33). He follows up on that thought in the following subchapter, “A Tripartite Universe” (pp. 34–47). Attempting to provide a “post­ humous ‘happy home’ ” (p. 38) by chamber graves, people stopped to evoke the notion of underground houses solely through burial goods, that is, the different functions of the aforementioned compartments were realized by sets of objects of similar usage. Instead, the character of a house was realized by plastically constructed architectural elements as well as two-dimensional murals on most of the chamber surfaces and smaller scaled carvings in stone. By depicting celestial phenomena or symbols thereof, chamber tombs became microcosms; at the same time, illustrations of scenes and human figures — most notably, Xiwangmu, the Queen Mother of the West — which often get identified with supernatural paradises, became increasingly popular. Judging this variety of representations, Wu Hung concludes that “the tomb designer provided all the answers he knew to the implied question of the world beyond death.” He also offers a reason for why this was the case: “[W]hile a serious inquiry into the ontological status of the afterlife remained absent in philosophical and religious texts, the scheme of tomb decoration did constantly change” (p. 62). Neither pictorial representations included in tombs nor individual motifs thereof did portray any particular kind of paradise. On the other hand, pictures of human beings often located at the center of the back wall of burial chambers did not relate to otherworldly abodes at all. Instead, they have to be understood as depictions of the tomb owners representing their soul. As such, he interprets them to have been extensions of a concept first visible in tomb number 1 at Mawangdui but allegedly evident in many other burials: the representation of the soul through an actual empty seat. Chapter 2 turns toward the matter of materiality. The materials of which burial goods were made, so Wu Hung argues, were inextricably linked to the architecture and decoration of Chinese tombs; all three aspects interacted in order to render a tomb functional. Thus, he seeks to answer the questions as to why certain materials, colors, and forms were used in the production of burial goods

446  China Review International: Vol. 18, No. 4, 2011

and how they were physically, as well as visually, manipulated in order to obtain religious meaning. Invoking a rather popular quote of Confucius recorded in the Liji, the source for these different features is quickly found. Basically, so-called spirit articles (mingqi; p. 87) should not have been functioning properly; they also should have been of inferior quality to real objects, while maintaining a similar shape. “In the realm of visual representation, this . . . was realized through manipulating a work’s shape, material, colour and decoration” (p. 89). As far as bronze mingqi are concerned, the author identifies six methods by which it was achieved: (1) miniaturization; (2) distortion of the form in order to render artifacts unusable, for example, to cast a lid onto the corpus of a vessel; (3) inferior quality through reproduction of vessel types in clay; (4) reduction of decor; (5) pairing of inferior reproductions with real counterparts; and (6) imitation of outdated types. Pottery mingqi are discussed in a separate section. In Neolithic burials, they stand out as “prestigious ritual vessels” (p. 92); by the time of the Eastern Zhou, tombs offer fired ceramic substitutes for actual bronze vessels. The following subchapter deals with tomb figurines — a special kind of mingqi because of “their representational functions” (p. 93). These representational purposes are confirmed by yet another reference to Confucius, who famously opposed the custom of accompanying the dead with human sacrifices while favoring “straw spirits” (chuling; p. 99). The Eastern Zhou burial M7 at Changzi, Shanxi, seems to showcase the practical realization of that notion perfectly as it brought three human victims along with four wooden figures to light. The symbolic power of the tomb figurines is further elucidated through the concepts of role, tableau(x),2 framing, miniaturization, verisimilitude, and magic. The role a figure was to symbolize is discernible by its physical form or certain attributes. A tableau, for instance, is constituted by figures of comparable size and function/role that have been found in close proximity. In Wu’s understanding, framing describes the fact that these tableaux were organized within the chamber according to their respective roles, thus creating a symbolic space, that is, the confines of a house, for the stationary soul of the deceased to reside in. As far as the aspect of miniaturization is concerned, figurines helped to generate the time and space of a fictional world inhabited by everlasting representations of human beings. Hence, the soul could live “in perpetuity” (p. 115). The concluding subchapter is devoted to the transformation of the body. Ritual prescriptive texts such as Liji and Yili describe how the corpse is transformed. The dead body was displayed in the mourning hall, and a banner carrying his name, thus identifying the corpse, would be produced. From then on, the dead lived on in the form of his banner. Next, by placing the banner on the buried coffin — Wu cites the silk cloth found in tomb number 1 at Mawangdui as an archaeological correlate — the deceased would be transformed from this world to the hereafter. Another form of transformation was achieved by the extensive use of jade. The well-known jade suits almost exclusively worn by members of the Western Han imperial clan, for instance, should prevent the body from decaying. Considering

Features  447

the enduring qualities of jade attested in many texts, people enjoyed eternal life through “their transformed bodies of jade” (p. 138). Referring to Zoroastrian burial customs (sixth and seventh centuries c.e.), cremation during the Song period, as well as customs of the Liao and Jin dynasties, the author picks up on distinctly later burial practices that were clearly introduced by foreign cultures and anything but common. Among other customs, he illustrates how life-sized wooden manikins interred during the Liao period were intended to restore the cremated bodies of some Buddhist monks and members of the social elite by placing the ashes into the bellies of the figures. Chapter 3 introduces the concept of temporality. Citing the Thousand Character Essay (Qianzi wen), a sixth-century c.e. text, the author returns to the portrayal of celestial phenomena. Through murals of, for instance, representations of the twelve months or the cosmic transformation of the five phases, a background of endlessly renewing temporal cycles had been provided. In this way, the soul of the deceased, epitomized by several methods described above, was part of a time continuum, thus eternally extending its existence. On the other hand, functional objects contained in the tombs, or lived objects (shengqi), were intended to build bridges to the times when the dead person was still alive; they “preserve[d] a past that [had] been abolished” (p. 162) by biological death. Epitaphs were “retro­ spective biographies” (p. 173) that connected the deceased to their descendants. As they were composed posthumously, epitaphs generated a link between the living and the dead as the bereaved reflected on the achievements of the deceased. In case of eminent historical or legendary figures illustrated in tombs, the tomb owners themselves referred to the past. Wu states that “the dead literally became one of these virtuous men from different times” (p. 182). The fact that burials sometimes reveal objects obviously older than the rest of the burial goods is considered to have been “returning to the ancient” ( fugu; p. 188). It was an act of ancestor worship, so to speak. The book’s final subchapter analyzes journeys displayed in tombs. We sometimes find real carriages, smaller replicas, or just pictures thereof in graves, which represent the procession from the mourning hall to the burial site and the voyage of the soul into the afterlife. Assessing extensive murals showing scenes of departure on the walls of the passageways of tombs, especially those dating from the sixth to the eighth centuries c.e., and the fact that they are located outside of the confinements of the tombs, the author understands them to have connected the world of the living with the hereafter. In sum, The Art of the Yellow Springs acquaints its readers with a number of thought-provoking, sometimes challenging, ideas. Let us consider, for instance, the so-called spirit seat, that is, the empty seat representing the deceased’s soul. Relying on the Old Ceremonies of the Han (Han jiu yi) compiled during the first century c.e., the author reports of an empty seat placed in the royal temple of the Eastern Han, which supposedly epitomized Emperor Gaozu, the founder of the Western Han dynasty. Similar arrangements have been found, so he continues, in

448  China Review International: Vol. 18, No. 4, 2011

tomb number 1 at both Mawangdui and Mancheng. We learn, however, that the custom was not restricted to “aristocrats, but was shared by low officials and even commoners during Han and post-Han times” (p. 68). Even though this assertion is followed by only two further examples, it certainly is an argument well worth additional research as several Han period burials provide clusters of tableware resembling set dining tables. Wu Hung’s observations on bronze mingqi outlined above also add depth to a phenomenon of relative doubtful function (see also Falkenhausen 2006: 105). The way the author of the Art of the Yellow Springs deals with this uncertainty, however, is symptomatic for the whole volume: “Without any textual evidence, we are still unable to fully explain the intentions and regulations behind such arrangements” (p. 96). That the author does not believe in the primary validity of archaeological evidence is obvious not only by this citation, but also by his general reliance on written sources to interpret the archaeological evidence. From an archaeological-methodological point of view — and the book under review is, after all, a study of archaeological material of which plenty is available in China — the method needs to be the other way around. It is the archaeologist’s duty to first analyze and interpret his material; only then should he consult textual evidence (if available) to support his interpretation. In case readers decide to accept, for instance, the author’s claim that Lady Dai’s (Mawangdui tomb no. 1) many layers of cloth and actual clothing were intended to preserve the body (pp. 22, 137), they would be mistaken, as it has already been demonstrated that the ancient Chinese usually did not attempt to preserve corpses (Brown 2002). In general, singular finds such as Lady Dai’s burial site cannot suffice to explain broader concept as long as there is not significant corroborating evidence. Moreover, one should be aware of considerable chronological gaps between textual sources and the actual archaeological phenomena they are expected to elucidate as well as between the archaeological phenomena themselves. The first aspect is visible, for instance, in the author’s treatment of the correlation of human sacrifices and tomb figurines. The Liji as we know it in its transmitted form, that is, the text that attributes Confucius with condemning human sacrifices in favor of “straw spirits,” was compiled by the early second century c.e. (Riegel 1993: 295). Yet, Wu uses the passage to illuminate the findings from a tomb dated by the excavators roughly between the sixth and fourth centuries b.c.e. (Shanxi sheng Kaogu Yanjiusuo 1984: 528). A lot could have changed in the intellectual history during a time span of six hundred years. The second aspect becomes apparent when turning toward the inception of the concept of a tomb as a microcosm. We learn that, for the first time, cardinal directions were symbolized by a dragon and tiger in a grave dating from the fifth millennium b.c.e., while the next tomb employing this scheme dates from the first century b.c.e. (pp. 48–49). Moreover, the book exposes a picture of neatly fitting, interrelated concepts; this, however, should not be confused with a presentation of a coherent Chinese view of the afterlife. To approach such a notion, much more of the apparent regional, synchronic, and diachronic

Features  449

differences in the available archaeological material need to be acknowledged and systematically analyzed. Nevertheless, keeping these reasons for due caution in mind, the volume provides for rewarding reading that hopefully will stimulate further research. Armin Selbitschka Armin Selbitschka is an assistant professor (Wissenschaftlicher Assistent) at LudwigMaximilians-University, Munich, and is author of Prestigegüter entlang der Seidenstraße? Archäologische und historische Untersuchungen zu Chinas Beziehungen zu Kulturen des Tarimbeckens vom zweiten bis frühen fünften Jahrhundert nach Christus (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2010). Notes

1.  For critical reviews of Wu Hung’s methodological approach in this book, see Bagley 1998, Kesner 1998, and Falkenhausen 1996. 2.  Throughout the book, the authors interchangeably uses the variants “tableau”/“tableaux.”

References

Bagley, Robert. 1998. Review of Monumentality in Early Chinese Art and Architecture, by Wu Hung. Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 85, no. 1: 221–256. Brown, Miranda. 2002. “Did the Early Chinese Preserve Corpses? A Reconsideration of Elite Conceptions of Death. Journal of East Asian Archaeology 4, nos. 1–4: 201–223. Falkenhausen, Lothar von. 1996. Review of Monumentality in Early Chinese Art and Architecture, by Wu Hung. Early China 21: 183–199. —   ——. 2006. Chinese Society in the Age of Confucius (1000–250 b.c.): The Archaeological Evidence. Los Angeles: Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, University of California Los Angeles. Kesner, Ladislav. 1998. Review of Monumentality in Early Chinese Art and Architecture, by Wu Hung. China Review International 5, no. 1: 35–51. Riegel, Jeffrey K. 1993. Li chi. In Early Chinese Texts: A Bibliographical Guide, edited by Michael Loewe. Berkeley: University of California. Shanxi sheng Kaogu Yanjiusuo. 1984. “Shanxi Changzi xian Dong Zhou mu.” Kaogu Xuebao 4: 503–529.